Test Tone vol. 79

Sound Experiments

Test Tone 79: Disturbances

Government Alpha

Government Alpha is Yasutoshi Yoshida's experimental noise project, running strong since 1994. He first started turning heads in 1995 with a track on the Extreme Music from Japan compilation CD from UK label Susan Lawly.

Since then, there has been a steady stream of Government Alpha output on compilation and collaboration CDs, as well as his own releases. In addition to sitting at the helm of long-running noise label Xerxes, Yoshida is a singular visual artist, contributing his collage work to albums, books and a range of other releases.

Zbigniew Karkowski

Zbigniew Karkowski studied composition at the State College of Music in Gothenburg, Sweden, aesthetics of modern music at the University of Gothenburg's Department of Musicology, and computer music at the Chalmers University of Technology. He works actively as a composer of both acoustic and electroacoustic music. He has written pieces for large orchestra (commissioned and performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra), an opera and several chamber music pieces that have been performed by ensembles in Sweden, Poland, and Germany. He was also a founding member of the electroacoustic music performance trio Sensorband, a unit notable for its network concerts played via ISDN and Internet.

Karkowski has collaborated with many experimental groups and artists, including The Hafler Trio, Blixa Bargeld, Merzbow, Stelarc, John Duncan, Aube, Tetsuo Furudate, Kelly Churko and more.

Manuel Knapp (Vienna) + Tatsuhisa Yamamoto

Viennese artist Manuel Knapp began his studies in the visual arts, but has followed a interdisciplinary trajectory involving both experimental film and sound, his works being shown and numerous film festivals and multimedia events worldwide. He currently back in Japan for some concerts with a number of fine local artists, including his unit with legendary Hiroshi Hasegawa (aka ASTRO), called Cosmic Coincidence.

On this night, Manuel will be joined by bombastic drummer Tatsuhisa Yamamoto, who despite 20+ gigs a month and sold-out shows with indie supergroup Natsumen, still finds the time to take part of these evenings with his signature 'drums and metal'. From psych jazz and progressive rock to scumcore and noise, Yamamoto has developed a reputation for holding his own in a number of unorthodox musical settings, while still keeping his unique voice as a drummer.

Masako Tanaka (Video works w/ Markus Popp: Sound)

Tokyo-born visual artist Masako Tanaka has long been making waves abroad with her resplendent video compositions, and her most recent work, Halveplane v.4 and Flam v.4.1, premiered at last year's CTM Festival (formerly club transmediale) in Berlin. By using the ten-channel video format in the CTM CineChamber in pioneering ways, CTM visitors were treated to the full measure and marvel of her spatial organisms. This 10-channel experience will be modified to fill the three main walls at SuperDeluxe in this rare showing of her work in Japan. Tanaka also worked as the main video production head for the "Multiple Otomo" Project on the Asphodel label where she was the primary editor, assembler and visual composition coordinator/adjuster.

A computer musician since the early 90s performing under the name Oval, Markus Popp was influential in so-called glitch with releases on Thrill Jockey and Mille Plateaux. Originally a three-piece, Oval disdained conventional electronic instruments – their early albums were composed through the creative abuse of compact disc players. Markus Popp returned with a new Oval album, O, in 2010.

Evil Penguin

Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces.